Many people on prednisolone are also taking Accrete D3 tablets. My mum's pharmacist told her to take this 1 hour before foor or two hours after food TWICE a day which can be a pain in the a*** to calculate the timings on some days.
However, recent reading up on Google suggests we may have been doing this wrong as other reputable sites state that it should be taken just before or just after a meal so now I am completely confused !
Sources:
http://www.ouh.nhs.uk/patient-guide/leaflets/files/11732Palendronic.pdf
https://patient.info/medicine/calcium-with-colecalciferol
high mark, this a new one on me i have been on this forum 5 years and its the first time i have heard of this med
is it like calceos for bone care, interesting to hear other views on this med
Hi Mark, I take both in the way described on the NHS website. Hope this helps.
I have been on these for 2 years I take 1 twice a day at approx the same time it's always about 2 hours after food but I don't think it matters as long as you take them. It's to keep your bones healthy, while you are on pred.
Pauline. It's a calcium/vit D supplement.
I'd always believed it should never be taken around meal times but no sure now
Hi Mark. Your Mum's chemist is almost right. I have been taking this for over 10 years. What is important is that you take it at least 1 hour after you other medication. It is well established that calcium can interfere with the absorption of some drugs, particularly prednisolone.
Hi again Mark, I have this article that explains the issue for you.
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http://patient.uservoice.com/knowledgebase/articles/398316-adding-links-to-posts
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One of the Golden Rules, pred for breakfast and calcium 1 hour before lunch and the other 1 hour before any other meal.
The Lead Pharmacist we use and came to a meetings and explained this to us over 9 years ago and also told us, before you buy any OTC or you have a new prescription, discuss this with your Pharmacist.
Compatibility is the key and Pharmacists know more about drugs than any other medic, 5 years training and then one year working under a qualified pharmacist and before they are let use on the public.
So make a friend with your Pharmacist.
It paid off for me, the GP prescribed an anti-biotic, Lara looked at it and said 'no way' on to the Gp and it was changed to a compatible one'............
Hi Mark,
Calcium can interact with cortioson, therefore it should not been taken together.
Vit D is fat soluble and needs fat to get absorbed. So you have to eat something with fat. "Accreted" seems to be coated and could have a slower and steady release. This would mean it really doesn't matter so much, when to take it.
I take my Pred in the morning with breakfast and the VitD/ Ca (+K2) with lunch.
Adding K2 helps moving the Ca from the blood into the bone. Otherwise it could lead to Ca plaques in the arteries. I think I am not allowed to tell you numbers about how much, but you can google it.
I take my vit D and calcium with a bit of cheese as it is suggested you should have something fatty with it. Also your mother should ensure that she leaves around three hours between taking the pred and taking the accrete. Apparently the accrete can cause problems with the absorption of the pred.
Interesting. The instructions on the box tell her NOT to take the D3 with any food and to take either 1 hour before or two hours after
I get an oily vitamin D capsule now, but maybe that's not possible there? None of our supplements are covered so I buy what I like. If you check the vitamin D council website you will find an interesting discussion saying basically that it doesn't matter whether you take D with food or without. I simply googled should you take vitamin D with food.
I am reading a book st the moment that refers to vit D research and they are raving about how important it is and how underestimated it has been in the past. Having a good reading seems to really reduce cardiac problems for example based on the research. They also say that malignant melanoma is not helped by sunscreen, it just helps against sunburn. Apparently melanoma has rocketed up since 1935 which is strange as we are now plastering ourselves with suntan lotion. No one bothered in 1935.
There are a whole lot more chemicals in the air, plus thinning of the ozone layer at certain latitudes, plus sunbathing is a "thing" with millions and millions more people than it was in earlier times with far more skin exposed.
I'd say the pharmacist is really rather over-egging his advice and not considering that when to take tablets must be simple when patients are on several medications - and he hasn't read the manufacturer's advice! After all, you'd think THEY might know how they want their product used.
I have looked up the manufacturer's data sheet for Accrete. It says:
"Tablets should be swallowed (without chewing) with water or fruit juice, ideally within an hour and a half after meals. The tablet can be broken in half, if needed."
i.e. it should be taken when there is some food in the stomach - this reduces the risk of the gastric side effects which do affect some people, and means there should be some fat present to transport the vit D and calcium from the gut into the bloodstream.
Other dietary aspects are oxalate-containing foods: "Oxalic acid (found in e.g. spinach, sorrel and rhubarb) and phytic acid (found in whole cereals) may reduce calcium absorption. The patient should not take Accrete D3 film-coated tablets within two hours after eating foods rich in oxalic acid and phytic acid."
Otherwise there is no dietary information.
It tells you to ask for advice if on certain other medications - including corticosteroids - but that is probably because you shouldn't take corticosteroids and calcium within a couple of hours of each other. So the sensible approach has already been mentioned: pred for breakfast (or earlier) and calcium/vit D soon after lunch and another meal.
I don't understand the drive to lie and grill yourself in the direct sun! Especially on a beach - it was bad enough when we didn't bother with sunscreen, sand sticking all over is horrible...
I've read the same thing Eileen but the label typed by the pharmacist that is stuck onto the box states otherwise
But what I'm saying is that the datasheet trumps the pharmacists personal opinion - and they have said the exact opposite of the manufacturers who want it to be taken WITHIN less than 2 hours after a meal. And that certainly fits with every other data sheet for calcium/vit D I have read (and I have read a few).
Personally I take my chewable calcium/vit D tablets when I think about them - and in 7 years on pred and only taking calcium/vit D for "bone protection" there has been only a minimal change in my bone density. Must be doing something right!!!!!
I have a similar experience but then I wondered if it is also our inherited genes and our lack of predisposition to bone loss, as well as our lack of other disease. My sister has Lupus and now is really suffering with bone loss and other complications. Of course she took prednisone very early in her life. I think the two of us possess different DNA.